Dear old members i just started riding last year and i'm still a newbie, kindly give me a feedback about the 2013 SB and what Brands do you recommend for me.btw i'm riding OmegaHD 2009, to be honest i'm tryin to ride it but it seems impossible

PS: if you have any question about kiting spots in Egypt, I can surely help you.

The switchblade can be good or bad depending on how you like your kites to feel. It's one of the slower and less responsive kites on the market, with more bar pressure than most. Some beginners really like this because it makes the kite super predictable, so if you accidentally throw the bar the wrong way, or oversteer it, it takes a longer time to turn and you can correct it.

Other than that, it does pretty much everything ok. It jumps well, goes upwind well, has good wind range. They are expensive, if that matters to you.

When I was still getting all the basics down I preferred my kites to be faster. When I made a mistake I wanted to be able to correct it right away. I found this very difficult with the switchblade because it's so unresponsive. I switched to Liquid Force Envys, and then C kites and progressed much faster. So it's more up to you, and how you like your kites to behave.

Either way, the switchblade is a good all around kite so if you can get a good deal on it you can't go wrong.

Other kites I would consider based on personal preference, that I think would be good for beginners:Liquid Force Envy (simple and easy to ride, great for surfing and wakestyle)Best Kahoona (very simple and easy to ride)Best TS (a little bit faster and more direct, great for freestyle when you improve)North Rebel or Evo, if you like 5 lines or 4Slingshot RPM (faster/direct, awesome for freestyle)